The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-07-12
TWENTY-SEYEN LIVES LOST
The Sad Fate that Overlook a Party of
Pleasure-Seekers in Canarsie Bay.
An Obstinate Captain Carries Too Much Sail,
and His Folly Results in Drowning
Tbree-Fourths of His Passengers.

New YoRK July 1.-THE sloop yacht Mys-
terry left Ruffie Bar. an island in Canarsie bay.
at o'clock last evening, loaded almost to the
gunwale with women and children. When OF
Barren island, route for Canarsie, the yacht
capsized. and only thirteen OF the forty souls
composing her passengers and crew are known
to have been rescued. The party, which was in
volved in this terrible disaster mace up
chiefly of German families resident in Brooklyn
and Long Island City. The sun was
just sinking when the passengers of the
Mystery and Christians gathered the pier
to embark for Canarsie. So many of the men
of the party showed the effects of the beer they
, had drunk that the shippers thought it best to
put the women and children aboard the Mystery,
which is a cabin yacht and rates as much
safer boat than her consort. The women pro-
tested, but their protests were UNDECIDED. The
Mystery and its precious load swung off from
the Ruff1s Bar pier att o'clock. The Chriatiana.
as could be easily seen, was about swinging out
in the Mystery's wake. Captain Hendrickson.
of the Mystery, said in the hearing Of some of
the women who were rescued. that he
was was going to get to Canarsie first or blow
stick out. Mrs Smither of Greenpoint, made
most earnest protest against more sail, as the
boat was already heelirg in a way that fright
SON said that he could sail the Mystery through
gale aud persisted in his order for moro SAIL
The reef knots unfsstened and the boom
dropped just sauall of considerable violence
struck the sail. In second she was on beam
ends, and all the people were struggling in the
choppy The catastrophe was wit
messed from the tug j. G. Dean. which was then
over two miles away For five minutes the
yacht remained on her beam ends. and the
shrouds and bulwarks afforded some hold for
he engufed people The struggle for place
to hold on to was awful Fully half of the
drowning people were children. The mothers
made frantic efforts to get their little ones to
where they could hold to something One
after another they were swept off in the tide
way and buoyed by their clothing, their hands
waving in frantic and unavalling appeals
for help. Some time before the Dean
got enough to be of use.
A negro put out from Barren island In a row.
boat and the first to aid the drowning peo-
pie. Altogether seven of the lives saved are to
be credited solely to his efforts. When the
Dean arrived there were few of tho victims still
above the surface. As she neared woman,
floating, trying to buoy up her four-year-old
child, a man on the guards suddenly exclaimed,
my God, that is my wifep' and Owed to her
aid He could save but one OF them,
and he chose his wife. He and she were soon
drawn aboard the Dean, but the child sank be-
fore their eyes The next grappled was woman
of middle age who had been kept on the surface
by her stoutness. She, however, was SO ex-
hausted that she died few minutes after she
was brought aboard the tug. child and an
other woman also died after they were taken
out, but the Deans willing passengers and crew
succeeded in rescuing five alive.
The party was mainly from the Eastern district
of Brooklyn. and was known as the Crescent
Yacht Club It was a nominal organization,
simply for the purpose of chowder party or
picnic, and in the depth of grief and horror ssCt
the accident has plunged its membe they are
scarcely able to tell the particulars of the make
up OF their party. The number of
invited guests is known only to the
persons who extended the invitations, and not
to others. This makes it impossible to give a
list of the passengers of the Inflated yacht. The
best advices estimate the whole load at thirty
seven and the mum Der of the saved is only ten.
The following is list of the lost up to the latest
reports:
MICHAEL sCHwrND, the blind ACCORDION player,
MARY BRANDELL.
MRS. LOUISE OBERNIER of 14S Varet street.
FRANK G. oBERNIER seven years old.
LIZZIE OBERNIER. five years old
CHAS. OBERNIER, two years old
MRS. WEISS, of Bushwick.
MRS. FARGO the daughter of Mrs. Weiss.
A child of Mrs Fargo.
ANNIE BEADER, seventeen years of age, of II
Morrell street, Brooklyn, East division
MRS. MEYERBERG.
MRS. A. R. POHLWITZ, and three children.
PHILIP LOMBERG
FREDDY LOMBERG, little girl of the same
family.
GEO. KRIN1, eight years old of Canarsie
NICHOLAS SCHEIDT, of DeKalb avenue,
avenue
CAPT DAVID HENDRICKSON, of Canarse.
HENRY HENDRICKSON, his nine year-old
MRS. O'BRIEN. wife of the of the Mys-
terv) and her three children
MRS. LOUISE LOWENBERG.
CHARLIE BADER.
JAMES BURGESS
MARK STARK.
Five children of John Switzer.